Within a few days, a November storm beached the ship where it listed and was relentlessly pounded by the furious surf. Struggling with a decrepit, heavily laden ship and a tired crew, Cermeno explored the California coast, eventually anchoring near the Point Reyes inlet now called Drakes Estero. Commanding San Agustin, a Manila galleon laden with a luxury cargo of Chinese silks, spices, and Ming porcelain bound for Acapulco, Cermeno endured both the first of hundreds of documented shipwrecks at Point Reyes, as well as one of the most amazing journeys to safety. Many believe that Drake's discovery of such a harbor inspired the Spanish to order Sebastian Rodriguez Cermeno, a Portuguese captain trading for Spain, to survey the California coast on his journey to Mexico from the Philippines in 1595. Their trade between the Philippines and Mexico was booming, and they were constantly seeking safe harbors along their route. Rumors of Drake's discovery of a safe harbor on the California coast intrigued the Spanish. These notes describe the genial welcome Drake and his men received, complete with ceremony and gifts, as well as the landscape and wildlife, and included commentary about fog which frequently obscures the peninsula during the summer months. Drake's chaplain's observations about the areas inhabitants suggest the landing occurred near a Coast Miwok settlement. The National Historic Landmark designation has the landing as Drake's Cove at Point Reyes National Seashore. Some experts believe that he landed somewhere near the area on June 17, 1579, and proclaimed it Nova Albion (New England) during his circumnavigation. The distinctive shapes of Point Reyes, Drakes Bay, and Tomales Bay as seen from the airĪlthough early explorers and Spanish trading galleons journeying between the Philippines and Acapulco passed by Point Reyes, some even anchoring briefly, it is the landing by Sir Francis Drake that dominates discussion of this era of Point Reyes early history. The tribe has almost 500 members, who engage in a revival of traditional customs and ceremonies, often held in Kule Loklo, "Valley of the Bear", a replica Miwok village in Point Reyes National Seashore. In 1992, Coast Miwok descendants established the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria, and in December 2000, legislation passed granting the tribe federal recognition. While attempting to convert them, these padres disrupted their traditional way of life and introduced diseases that brought many deaths, fewer births, and significantly increasing infant mortality rates. Acorns served as a staple, as they could be stored in dry granaries to provide sustenance when food was less plentiful.Īlthough the Coast Miwok periodically interacted with European explorers, they continued their habitation until late in the 18th century when the Spanish built Mission San Rafael and padres began journeying to Point Reyes to recruit them to move to the mission. The Coast Miwok utilized a variety of different plants growing at Point Reyes. Seasonal hunters and gatherers, they were nourished by fish, clams, mussels, and crab, in addition to the deer, elk, bear, mud hen, geese, and small game they hunted with spears and bows. They left evidence of well over a hundred encampments on the peninsula, with a population estimated to have been nearly 3,000. The contemporary inhabitants of the Point Reyes area at the time of European arrival were the Coast Miwok. South Beach and Point Reyes Peninsula The Coast Miwok (Lobes are ridges of slide material commonly referred to in the literature from erosion events and the point is of that shape out to sea.) The point may once have been known as Lobes Lighthouse by the sailors of clipper ships on the meat trade. Point Reyes lends its name to the town of Point Reyes Station. The Mount Vision fire in 1995 burned part of Inverness Ridge. West of the ridge, the land flattens out and the vegetation turns to scrub. Inverness Ridge runs along the peninsula's northwest-southeast spine, with forested peaks around 430 metres (1,410 ft). Drakes Bay and Drake's Estero are named after English seafarer Sir Francis Drake who possibly hauled his ship, the Golden Hinde, up onto the beach for repairs in June 1579. The headland is largely drained by Drakes Estero. The cape protects Drakes Bay on its southern side. The headland is protected as part of Point Reyes National Seashore. The term is often applied to the Point Reyes Peninsula, the region bounded by Tomales Bay on the northeast and Bolinas Lagoon on the southeast. Located in Marin County, it is approximately 30 miles (50 km) west-northwest of San Francisco. Point Reyes ( Spanish: Punto de los Reyes, meaning "Point of the Kings") is a prominent cape and popular Northern California tourist destination on the Pacific coast.
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